Lion King

You must see this video. Any explanation I give here won't do it justice. . .

http://youtube.com/watch?v=adYbFQFXG0U

Popsicles

I tried the popsicles recommended in Shape magazine's snack awards (see my last post) - they're yummy. At only 45 calories each, well worth it.

And the award goes to. . .

Shape magazine has announced this year's winners for its great snack awards. Forget the Oscars - this is my kind of contest.

From their list I've tried the Quaker 90-calorie dark chocolate cherry granola bars and the individual-size Jell-o pudding. The granola bars are really good. I'm hooked. The pudding is good if you're really in the mood for pudding. Next I want to try the popsicles and the Pepperidge Farms cookies.

Here's my own snacking tip: When I crave sweets (which is often), a sugar-free sweet pickle often satisfies me. Pickles are tasty and have almost no calories.

Horse related injuries

From horse trainer Larry Trocha: "According to the latest statistics, approximately 80,000 people each year are taken to the hospital emergency room because of horse related injuries." I read somewhere else that horseback riding is as dangerous as riding motorcycles, in terms of the number of injuries.

Every time I get on a horse I think about the risk. Knock on wood I've never had a serious horse related injury. Three falls, a few bites, some smushed toes, and a couple of kicks - no injuries.

Hope my luck holds. . .

Princess

My honorary niece and princess-in-training, Emilie, went to Disney recently to take care of some serious princess business.

Congratulations, Andrea and Jason!

Yesterday my friends Andrea and Jason got married! Not only did I get to attend, but I also did a reading in the ceremony. Check out the wedding photos on Flickr.

The wedding was at the historic Blawenburg Reformed Church, built in 1830. In those days, families built their own pews. The pews still have numbers on them. The pews are divided in the middle, and there is a small door separating each pew from the aisle. Those doors were used (before electric heat) to keep out windy drafts on cold days. No stained glass in this church. But beautiful chandeliers (antiques - converted from gas to electric) and white shutters on all of the windows. You could feel the history when you walked in. Very cool.

The reception was at the Princeton Westin, and was tons of fun. We need more dancing like that.

Congratulations, Andrea and Jason!

Happy trails

This weekend I had the best-ever trail ride with Duke. Usually he challenges me because he wants to go fast - or at least faster than any other horse on the trail ride. To me, a trail ride. To Duke, a foot race.

At Alan's suggestion I wore spurs on the trail this weekend. It worked great. Wearing spurs doesn't necessarily mean using spurs. In fact, I rarely ever touch Duke with a spur when I'm wearing them. The mere sound motivates him to respond faster.

Sorry, Duke.

Do you take paypal?

Recently I went to a meeting in the Longworth House building in DC. On the way to the meeting room, I saw a couple of these signs in the hallway.

Hmm.

Silence is golden

My laptop fan has been annoyingly loud lately. I've had my laptop for 4+ years - a good long run - but I'm not ready to get a new one. So I decided to fix it myself (shock).

First I backed up all of my files just in case. Then I read up a little about taking apart Toshiba laptops. I opened up my laptop, poked around until I found a part called the heatsink. It reminds me of the lint catcher on a hairdryer - same basic idea. Then I took the fan out, to get to the heatsink. I cleaned the dust bunnies off the heatsink, reinstalled the fan, and put the laptop back together.

My laptop is nice and quiet again. The fridge actually drowns it out now. Yay!